CHAPTER

2

THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH IN THE FIRST MILLENNIUM

The history of music in medieval Europe is intertwined with the history of the Christian church, the dominant social institution for most of the Middle Ages. Religious services were mostly sung or intoned rather than spoken. Many aspects of Western music, from notation to polyphony, first developed within church music. Most schools were part of the church, and most composers and writers on music were trained there. Moreover, because notation was invented for church music, that type of medieval music is the best preserved today.

This chapter traces the development of the church in the West and of its music, including the traditions and values that shaped how music was used and regarded, attempts to standardize liturgy and music as unifying forces, and the development of notation as a tool for specifying and teaching melody. The church drew on Greek philosophy and music theory, but also fostered practical theory for training musicians.